On November 13th, Ding Liguo, Chairman of Shanghai Delong Steel Group, Delong Composite Energy Group and New Tianjin Steel Group shared his entrepreneurial experience of over 30 years in the steel industry with TJU students during the university’s 5th Entrepreneur Talk, a series of lectures aimed at enhancing students' innovation and entrepreneurship capabilities. The lecture attracted nearly 200 attendees on-site and garnered nearly 3,000 online viewers. It received over 8,000 likes and comments through interactive engagement.
During the lecture, Chairman Ding Liguo reviewed how he started his own business in steel 32 years ago and led the company through twists and turns to be listed as one of the “Fortune Global 500” for two consecutive years in 2022 and 2023.
“ I truly believe that by dedicating ourselves to something for a lifetime, we will undoubtedly achieve success,” said Ding.
In 1991, 21-year-old Ding Liguo, a fresh graduate, boarded a train south to Shenzhen in pursuit of job opportunities. While in Shenzhen, he felt firsthand the vibrant winds of reform and opening up and developed a a new understanding of entrepreneurship which eventually prompted him to start his own business. A year later, Ding returned to Tangshan, a city in Hebei Province from Shenzhen and established Tangshan Changcheng Steel Rolling Co., Ltd with raised funds.
At that time, the crude steel production began to show a slight growth trend nationwide and steel prices were fluctuating upward. Seizing the opportunity in the domestic steel market, Ding led the company to achieve a rapid development and expansion. In 1998, Ding established Tangshan Liguo Industrial Group Co., Ltd., shifting from simple steel rolling to integrated iron and steel production, which marked the transition from short-term business activities such as contracting and leasing to the long-term development of the iron and steel manufacturing industry—a remarkable feat in the entrepreneurial history of Tangshan.
Two years later, he invested in the acquisition of Hebei Xingtai Xinmou Steel Company burdened with a debt of 240 million. After the acquisition, the company was renamed “Xingtai Delong Steel Industry Co., Ltd.” From 2003 to 2008, it marked a golden six years of the growth of the domestic steel industry. Obviously, as the steel market expanded dramatically and steel prices went through the roof, Ding’s steel empire became increasingly prominent. In 2005, at the age of 35, Ding ushered in the highlight of his life when Delong Holdings was licensed and listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX).
Many people owed Ding’s success to good luck, but he stated that good luck always favors those who are good at seizing opportunities, and they always embrace the times and dare to pursue their dreams.
The steel industry is a highly cyclical sector, especially since the beginning of the 21st century. Steel prices have fluctuated significantly, experiencing both a low period when prices were lower than cabbage and soaring moments of great prosperity. From 2001 to 2022, China’s steel industry went through four rounds of such highs and lows.
“We realized that only by speeding up transformation and upgrading and optimizing product structure, can Delong Steel Group ensure the healthy development. Innovation may be risky, but unchanging is more hazardous,” said Dong Liguo.
In the face of the rapidly changing new situation of the steel industry, Delong Steel Group adjusted its development strategy accordingly and shut down three steel plants in 2021. “We put more efforts in overseas market expansion.” In 2017, Delong Steel Group started to build Dexin Steel Group in Indonesia, with current and under-construction production capacities reaching 7 million tons of steel and 7.5 million tons of coke.
A series of measures were taken to increase the corporation’s competitiveness. For example, they accelerated the transformation and upgrading of existing enterprises, innovated the operation and management mechanism, and reduced the costs while improving both quality and efficiency. Delong Steel Group is the first domestic enterprise to apply the high furnace BPRT energy-saving technology, achieving an energy saving rate of over 40%. The waste heat from the 230 sinter-circle-cooling machines was handled by gradient utilization, leading to another energy saving rate of 70%.
According to a previous news report, Delong Steel Group secured an annual electricity savings of 100 million kilowatt-hours through full-process promotion of frequency conversion power-saving technology. It also boasts a self-generation power rate of over 70% by utilizing excess high furnace coal gas and waste heat.
Ding Liguo proudly stated, "Our company has made tremendous strides in green development, the acquisition and merger of production units, expansion into international markets, and the application of digital intelligence." He highlighted several key factors that have contributed to successfully leading the company through economic cycles. "Once you have established a development strategy, it is important to adhere to it, stay the course, maintain steadfastness, and exhibit confidence in your industry. When opportunities arise, be sure to seize them with an enterprising spirit." For Ding Liguo, challenges are ever-present, and the only way to keep pace with the times is to embrace and dare to make changes.
After the lecture, Ding Liguo was conferred the title of Entrepreneurship Tutor at TJU’s Xuanhuai School which aims at promoting innovation and entrepreneurship among college students and provides relevant training and resources for student and alumni business starters. It is named after Sheng Xuanhuai who founded the university in 1895.
By Zhang Hengbiao
Editor: Eva Yin
